When
I started at Chandris Lines the company were operating a Round-World
Service, with the Head Office in Athens/Piraeus, but their passenger
operations were controlled from London.

The ships routes were based on sailings from Bremerhaven/Rotterdam/Southampton
southbound via the Suez Canal to Sydney with the return section of the
voyage via the Panama Canal.

At
the time (1969-1973) Chandris’s ships were divided up between those
which operated the Round-World Service - ‘Australis’ (Flagship),
‘Britannis’ and ‘Ellinis’; Greece/ Australia
- ‘Patris’ and "Queen Frederica"
and cruising in the Mediterranean/ Caribbean with the ‘Amerikanis’.

The
"Patris", formerly Union Castle
Line's "Bloemfontein Castle " built by Harland and Wollfe
in Belfast in 1950, started off the Chandris passenger shipping arm of
the company to Australia in 1959, which up to this time had been running
freighters. She carried Greek migrants to Australia and returned to Greece
with young Australians coming to Europe and England for working holidays
at cheaper rates than those offered by the big established companies such
as P and O, Orient Line, Shaw Savill and New Zealand Shipping Co. As such
"Patris" was held in special esteem by Mr Chandris.

She
was sold for scrap in July 1987

The
"QUEEN FREDERICA" from a photograph
in Ships Monthly circa 1980s

The
Royal Helennic Mailship "Queen Frederica"was built for
Matson Lines as the "Malola" in 1937, renamed "Matsonia"
in 1938, sold to Home Lines and again re-named "Atlantic"
in 1948 and "Queen Frederica" in 1955 and finally to
Chandris Lines in 1966 as the "QUEEN FREDERICA" . She
was withdrawn from service in 1971, after the aquisition of Britanis,
and was scrapped in Greece in 1977.

My
Wife, Anne, became her 'Secretary' in Melbourne, until the ship was withdrawn
when Anne transferred to "Ellinis".

Postcard
of the "ELLINIS"

The
"Ellinis" was built for Matson Line as the "Lurline"
in 1932 (see below) and retained her name until bought by Chandris
Lines in 1963 when she was refitted and re-named. Her operational route
was Southampton to Australia returning via the Panama Canal and New York.

My
wife was her Berthing Officer's Secretary. On 24th January 1973 we boarded
her in New York and returned to Southampton arriving on the 1st March
1973, both ceasing our employment with Chandris Lines on that day.

"LURLINE"

The
advertisement, opposite, is one of many that was used by Matson Line to
advertise the "Lurline". This one appeared in 1954.

When
sold to Chandris she was refitted and modernised inside whilst still largely
maintaining her outward appearance but with her bow given a more raked
and pleasing appearance.

"BRITANIS" arriving at Station PierPort
Melbourne circa 1972, from a Photograph in the
National Library of Australia,
which also appears in
Stuart Bremer's excellent 'Home and Back' published by
Dreamweaver Books,
Sydney reprint 1986.

The
"Britanis" was built for Matson Line as the "Monterey"
in 1932 and retained this name until 1957 when she was re-named "Matsonia".
In 1963 she was again re-named by Matson Lines as the "Lurline"
as a result of the previous "Lurline" being sold to Chandris
in 1963, which she kept until bought by Chandris Lines in 1970 when she
was re-named "Britanis", operating mainly on the UK to
Australia route via Suez and occasionally round -the-world.

In
1978 she was taken off the Australian run, the Migrant Contract by sea
having been discontinued, and was stationed in Greece where she was used
for Mediterranean cruising. Later laid up and reportedly rotting in a
Greek bay along with many other once fine ships. Photographs of which
are prohibited by the Greek authorities...one wonders why!

The
"Brittany" was built for the Societe Generale des Transports
Maritimes in 1952 as the "Bretagne" and operated under
that name for 8 years until bought by Chandris Lines in 1960 and refitted
at Piraeus andre-named
"Brittany" being put on the Australian run.

In
1963 she caught fire and became a total wreck at Skaramanga in Greece, being
scrapped in Italy. It was said, at the time, that the insurance payout on
her enabled Chandris to buy "Britanis" as a replacement.

Postcard
of the "AUSTRALIS"

"Australis"
started life as the United States Line's "S.S. "America",
in 1940 and had a long and distinguished passenger record during peace and
war. In 1964 she was put up for sale and was bought by Chandris Lines to
become their Flagship with the name "Australis" being put
on the UK Australia Round-the-World service. I became her 'Berthing Officer'
in Melbourne from 1969 to 1973, and remained so until my wife and I
returned to England via Panama aboard her, disembarking at Fort Lauderdale
for a few weeks, then, joining "Ellinis" at New York, in
January 1973. This fine vessel is now, a wreck, broken in two, her forepart
lying on a beach at Fuerte Ventura, a sad end to such a fine ship.

The
last Migrant Liner "AUSTRALIS" at Station Pier

This photograph of "Australis" alongside Outer West Station Pier
is a copy of a photograph in the 'Immigration Museum' situated in what used
to be the Customs Clearing House in Flinders Street, Melbourne. I copied
this in April 2003 when I visited Melbourne for the first time in 19 years.
The original photograph is entitled " The Chandris Liner Australis,
the last Migrant Liner". She is also remembered at the entrance to
Station Pier on a modern bow-like structure in stainless steel upon which
there are many former ships engraved.

Chandris
Line Baggage Labels

All
shipping companies had their own baggage labels. These shown here are
typical.

The
red 'HOLD' label was used for baggage that was 'Not Wanted on Voyage '
and which was stowed away in the ship's hold. These were cardboard labels
with an eyelet at the top for attaching the label with string. It was
generally better to fasten them with tacks onto wooden boxes to stop them
from coming off.

The
green and blue labels were for 'Cabin Baggage'. and the examples shown
were used on Chandris America ships, or for people boarding vessels for
UK and beyond when these labels were given out. The centre label is cardboard,
also shown below, together with the reverse side on which the cabin and
passenger details were written.

The
red 'sticky' label - at left - was used out of the United Kingdom, Australia
and New Zealand as well as Florida and New York .

There
were others for 'Baggage Room', which generally consisted of cabin trunks
that could be got at during the voyage at times when the Baggage Room
was open during each day. This meant that there was a minimum of suitcases
and light baggage kept in the cabin.

I
still have one or two of my Chandris Lines (Australia) Business cards. The
department in Melbourne consisted of two main sections, with the Passenger
Department, proper, being on the ground floor, where passengers came in
to make bookings and collect tickets etc. Upstairs on the first floor was
the Berthing Department, where all the requests for cabins and berths, both
from prospective passengers and travel agents, were processed and where
the 'berthing books or registers were kept. Each ship had its own Senior
Berthing Officer, an Assistant Berthing Officer and Secretary, so it was
a small self-contained unit and very efficient.

Chandris
Lines, in keeping with many other shipping lines and airlines, issued
blank International Vaccination Certificates for use by their passengers.
One such is shown above left, and was owned by my late Mother.
(Michael Byard Collection)